MACCAN – Chris Cameron is continuing his effort to capture the history of Maccan before it disappears forever.

Three years after writing his first history of the community, the Maccan native, who now lives in Edmonton, has completed this fourth and final book – A Taste of Maccan: Where Land and Sea Meet.

“In the first book I wrote I had a lot of facts and figures on the history of Maccan, but I thought something was missing so I decided a right a companion book, something a little lighter,” Cameron said. “Thanks to people like Earl Hoeg, Gordon Boss and Gardiner Hurley I was able to provide a greater visual of Maccan from the perspective of the people, the social life of the community and the natural beauty of Maccan and the area around it.”

The 248-page book includes new photographs of the old Maritime Railway Joggins trains he purchased on eBay from sellers in the United States. Interspersed throughout the book are many old recipes from Maccan.

A Taste of Maccan: Where Land and Sea Meet also includes an old map of Maccan as well as photographs of the railway and the legion as well as the 1948-49 Maccan Blackhawks.

It also contains the story of the ship bell from the barq Lalla that was built in Maccan in 1874. The bell was presented to the Cottesloe Surf Living Saving Club in Perth, Australia in 1913 as a shark warning bell. It’s still hanging beside the club bar to this day.

The Lalla ended her days in 1906 and was sunk in gunnery practice in 1917 by the light cruiser HMAS Brisbane.

Cameron has also listed the names of the 45 Maccaners who have passed away since he started his research and writing on Maccan. He hopes the book serves a purpose for this and future generations.

“The book is as much a deserving acknowledgement of this loss of living memory as it is a history of a village,” Cameron said. “For many years I couldn’t find much history on Maccan, so I saw the need. I grew up in Maccan and wanted to give something back.”

Cameron has dedicated the book to his former River Hebert District High School English teacher Don Fenwick.

Anyone interested in purchasing the book can contact Cameron at cfcmaccan@hotmail.com. The ISBN number is 9798-0-9876704-1-0 and the cost is $35 plus shipping.

His second book was on the Maccan Royals, while his third book was about the history of the post office in Maccan.